Decatur, IL (WAND) – In Illinois, drivers have seen gas prices jump from under $3 a gallon to nearly $4 a gallon at some locations. But for food truck owners, it has an even harsher effect on their business.
Many food truck owners have to pay to gas up their trucks with diesel fuel. They also have to fill propane tanks and refill gas on their generators.
Kaylin Cohn, owner of food truck bakery business KLC Creations, said that she usually pays just under $1,000 to fuel her generators every year. But at this rate, she expects it will cost even more.
“We typically prepare for it, but with them skyrocketing so quickly, it was something that kind of hit us the wrong way,” Cohn said.
Oil prices shot up to over $100 a barrel in early March, putting a squeeze on world economies. According to AAA, 60% of what customers pay at the pump is based on the price of a barrel of crude oil.
AAA spokesperson Molly Hart said customers are seeing an abnormal uptick due to multiple factors.
“Even though every year we see this uptick in prices due to seasonal refineries going to seasonal maintenance and also switching over to the summer blend that’s more expensive to make, we’re seeing an uptick in prices because of geopolitical tensions in Iran,” Hart said.
